Star-Lord withdrew his gaze from the distance, turned to Gamora, and said,
"What do we do next?"
Gamora kept her head lowered as she carefully wiped down her longsword, answering casually,
"My contact told us to wait."
"It's just a negotiation tactic. Trust me, I'm good at this sort of thing."
As he spoke, Star-Lord glanced at the longsword in Gamora's hand. "And your style is more like swinging a blade and saying, 'These are my terms!'"
For his last sentence, Star-Lord deliberately imitated Gamora's tone, making his voice cold and stern.
Gamora could not help laughing at his impression. She turned to look at him and said with a smile,
"My father never taught me how to pressure people."
"Thanos?"
Star-Lord asked.
Gamora's expression darkened at that, and she said coldly,
"He isn't my father!"
Turning to look at the dazzling, brilliant starry sky in the distance, Gamora rarely opened up, her expression complicated as she slowly recounted her past.
"Thanos invaded my homeworld and killed my parents in front of me."
"He tortured me and turned me into a killing machine."
"When he said he was going to help Ronan destroy an entire planet."
Gamora turned to Star-Lord, her face heavy as she said,
"I couldn't stand by and do nothing, so..."
This was the first time in all these years that Gamora had voiced what was in her heart to someone else. Thinking back on everything she had been through, she could not help feeling a jumble of emotions.
Sensing that her emotions were becoming unstable, Gamora did not continue. Instead, she looked at the Walkman tucked into Star-Lord's belt, took it out, and asked,
"Why did you risk your life to go back for it?"
"My mother gave it to me."
Star-Lord looked at the Walkman